The high-rise residential buildings, constructed in 1960s and 1970s, may be gradually torn down following the deadly fire, which occurred in the Grenfell tower, Sadiq Khan, the mayor of the UK capital said.

A huge fire started at the 24-floor Grenfell tower in North Kensington on Wednesday, engulfing the entire building and trapping almost 120 families inside, with at least 58 people missing, presumably dead, according to the latest police figures.

“In the postwar rush to reconstruct our country, towers went up in large numbers, most of which are still here today. Nowadays, we would not dream of building towers to the standards of the 1970s, but their inhabitants still have to live with that legacy. It may well be the defining outcome of this tragedy that the worst mistakes of the 1960s and 1970s are systematically torn down. Of course, this must mean people being rehoused in the same areas where they have put down roots,” Khan said in an article, published by the Guardian newspaper on Sunday.

The mayor noted that there were a lot of the high-rise buildings, similar to the Grenfell Tower across London and the United Kingdom, stressing that their safety should be accessed urgently.

“Tens of thousands of people are understandably worried about whether they are safe in their own homes. The government has now agreed to compile a list of all similar properties; they all need to be assessed and, if necessary, made safe. This work must be completed urgently with the information made available to the public and the maximum amount of transparency,” Khan said.

The Grenfell tower tragedy prompted demonstrations in London on Friday over the way local authorities dealt with the consequences of the fire. The protesters stormed the Kensington Town Hall, demanding more information about the fire and the victims.